Melvin Davis entered office in January 2001, with ambitious but unpublicized recreation goals. He went to work in the early months of 2001 working on the “Big Park”. It was kept under “wraps” for months. Many of the original planned amenities are just recently coming online eight years later – and much later and more costly than originally estimated.

AVOC

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March 1, 2009

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Oconee SPLOST Referendum on March 17, 2009 – Part 1

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By Wendell Dawson, Editor, AVOC, Inc

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The SPLOST Referendum set for March 17, 2009, was largely developed “behind the scenes” as have many other major decisions in Oconee County in recent years. It will extend the reach of the current Board into 2015, long after Mr. Davis and others will be gone from office.

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A big item is for a $ 3.5 Million Communications System! That sounds ambitious. It is more than was spent on the 1986 jail, 1993 Civic Center or the 1996-8 Courthouse Expansion. Our revenues, spending and tastes have really expanded in recent years! OCONEE SPLOST 2009 Project List.pdfx

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SPLOSTS do not get much attention because the County Leadership privately prefers a low turnout. It is easier to use “phone trees” and group contacts to get a favorable majority. Public discussion could lead to questions and issues that voters would tune into. That could bring out more voters and more “No Votes”! At least this one does not propose a lot of expensive buildings to be lighted, heated, cooled and staffed for future county budgets.

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SPLOST was originally used for a jail, roads improvements and water lines. Fire stations have been built along with the Civic Center and expanded courthouse. Recreational spending has expanded tremendously and roads have been neglected in recent years.

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Melvin Davis entered office in January 2001, with ambitious but unpublicized recreation goals.He went to work in the early months of 2001 working on the “Big Park”.It was kept under “wraps” for months. Many of the original planned amenities are just recently coming online eight years later – and much later than originally estimated.

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The original estimated cost and approved General Obligations Bonds amount have been significantly exceeded. The new SPLOST will deal with some of that Shortfall. There have been overruns that have largely been handled “under the radar” largely under the guise of “Litigation” or “land acquisition”. New members of the Board since then have also brought more information to light.

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Lee Becker’s Blog has been an instrument for publicizing much of the SPLOST information that has been kept “under the radar”. The local media does an inadequate job of covering this sort of thing- advertising and risk of irritating the “power structure”. Lee has a knack for ferretingout records of “secret or unpublicized meetings”, the latest being a meeting at the Courthouse on December 17, 2008, concerning Courthouse space. The Courthouse is not a dead issue and will be the subject of Part 3 of this series.

WATKINSVILLE - A construction company wants the Oconee County government to pony up nearly $ million it says it's owed for work on the county's sprawling new park, according to a lawsuit from the contractor.

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County officials breached their agreement with general contractor F.E. Sims Enterprises by adding a range of extra costs to build Oconee Veterans Park and have refused to pay for the work, the company says in a Feb. 11 lawsuit filed in Superior Court.

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The complaint against the county and the five current commissioners alleges county officials failed to provide design details on time, made changes to the scope of the work and otherwise interfered with F.E. Sims' performance.

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The county also breached its contract by "controlling or influencing the employment of subcontractors that failed to properly perform or complete their work resulting in extensive costs,"………………………..